Take To The Skies: What Wasn't Meant To Be
by Higuchimon
Summary: How did one of Daisuke's feathers get out when he's being kept under such close guard by the Digimon Kaiser? [complete]
1. Chapter 1

**Series Title:** Take To The Skies|| **Title:** What Wasn't Meant To Be  
 **Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,502|| **Story Word Count:** 1,502|| **Chapter Count:** 1/8  
 **Genre:** Drama, Adventure|| **Rated:** PG  
 **Written For:** Diversity Writing Challenge, section I16, sidestory to another fic of yours; Halloween Trick or Treat Bag (Advent), day #9, write an event coming full circle; Written for the Word Counts Set Boot Camp, #11, 12,574; One Pairing Boot Camp, #14, lesson; Endurance Challenge (post one chapter per week)  
 **Note:** This takes place in the same universe as **Gift of Flight** and **One Small Hint** , and explains something about the latter.  
 **Summary:** How did one of Daisuke's feathers get out when he's being kept under such close guard by the Digimon Kaiser?

* * *

Daisuke kept his wings pulled in close. He didn't want to get them dirty. Wormmon directed a team of enslaved Digimon to keep the Kaiser's fortress clean, including the Kaiser's personal quarters where Daisuke spent whatever time he wasn't at the Kaiser's side. But he still didn't want to let his wings brush against the floor.

Those were the Kaiser's orders, as well. His pet was to keep himself clean at all times.

Sometimes Kaiser went out of his way not just to pet Daisuke's head, but to caress his feathers and bury his fingers in their warmth. Daisuke shuddered just thinking about his ma- his captor's horrific touch.

Kaiser didn't always hurt him. That made it all the worse, because Daisuke could never be certain of what would happen until Kaiser made contact with him. Touching Daisuke's wings was almost always a reward, both for Daisuke and Kaiser himself. Touching anywhere else could mean almost anything.

He closed his eyes and leaned back carefully. Kaiser was out of the fortress today, on some kind of errand. Daisuke didn't know what it was, but the thought of the warm sun on his wings and the air coursing through them made him hurt with need.

 _I have to get out of here._ He wanted that more than he wanted anything at all. He wanted to spread his wings and fly, he wanted to go where he chose, and to never, ever have to ask anyone – the Kaiser – for permission for anything ever again.

He'd lost track of how long he'd been here. He guessed it had been months by now, just by how many times he'd eaten. _Those_ he remembered with stark, searing clarity, since he had to beg every time for food. It came easier now than it did in the beginning, but coming easier didn't mean he liked it.

 _They miss me, don't they?_ He wanted to believe that. He'd seen them a few times, now and then when Kaiser allowed him to fly in one of the parts of the fortress that had a high enough roof, and once, tempting and terrible all at the same time, he'd actually been outside with Kaiser, and the Chosen passed within sight of him.

But they hadn't been able to _see_ him; Kaiser kept him under firm control, and he knew what would happen if he made his captor angry. He knew all too well.

Some of his bruises twinged at the thought. He'd almost healed from them all, and Kaiser didn't hurt him very much anymore anyway. Only when he pushed too hard.

Only when he deserved it.

He shoved that thought away with a nearly audible grunt. He didn't deserve it, no matter what Kaiser said to him.

 _I'm not a pet. I'm a_ _ **Flyer**_ _, not something to be kept on a leash!_

He'd lost track of many things, including how many times he'd had to tell himself that. He wouldn't let himself forget _that_. If he ever did…

If he did, he'd be the pet Kaiser wanted.

Daisuke didn't do 'planning' all that well. He never had; just jumping ahead and hoping for the best usually worked for him. But that wasn't going to get him out of here.

 _So what can I do?_ The tips of his wings twitched as he tried to work this out. _He's not going to unchain me until he gets back._

So… could he figure out a way to get out of there before Kaiser came back?

He prodded at the thought a little more. There weren't many Digimon who came in here, and mostly that was Wormmon...who lead the cleaning crew when he did.

Daisuke could feel the vague pieces of a thought starting to fit together. The cleaning crew hadn't been in today. It could be about time for them. They'd probably want to get it done before Kaiser came back.

He fidgeted a little more before he came to a decision. It wasn't much of a plan, but it would work. It had to work. He had to do _something_ ; if he didn't do anything, he might as well just sit here and start barking or purring whenever Kaiser wanted him to.

His shoulders remained tense and his fingers dug deeper into his hands until he heard noise coming from outside the room. Wormmon's voice, directing the crew.

He drooped his head farther, staring morosely at the floor, his wings drooping, the saddest expression he could work onto his features. He hated doing this to Wormmon, since the little bug had been more or less friendly to him since his capture. But when it came down to his freedom or Wormmon not being in trouble, he knew what he'd pick if he had the choice.

Or at least what he'd pick when Kaiser wasn't there _making_ him pick. And maybe Wormmon wouldn't get into too much trouble.

Daisuke steeled himself inwardly as the cleaners entered the room. Usually one of them unchained him from the pole, but Kaiser was either in the room with them, or somewhere in the fortress itself. Running away wouldn't do any good when he'd just run right into his captor anyway.

But today, when Kaiser wasn't there, was a different story. His best chance. Probably his only chance.

As always, they worked without saying a single word, barely even giving him a glance, until the time came when they needed to clean around his area. He stayed where he was, staring downward, a pose he often held, even now when he'd spent so much time here that it was easier to do as he was told than anything else.

Wormmon wiggled into his line of sight. "Daisuke? Would you please get up?"

Daisuke let out a long sigh before he pulled himself to his feet. One of the Digimon – he didn't recognize which one it was – reached behind him and unfastened the chain that kept Daisuke restrained. It hadn't always been like that, but the more Daisuke adjusted to his captivity, the more freedom – of sorts – Kaiser gave him.

 _If he catches me, that's all gone._ Daisuke knew that. So the only answer was not to get caught at all.

He remained with his head down, all attention on the floor, as if he couldn't possibly wait to get chained back down.

Daisuke did recognize the Digimon that held the other end of the chain now: a Gazimon. Ringed or Spiraled Digimon didn't use their attacks on him; Kaiser didn't see a need for it, since he would be the one to track Daisuke down in the event of an escape attempt.

 _The doors and windows only open for them or him, though._ He remembered that from the very first day that Kaiser brought him there. It had been one of the things that kept him from trying this beforehand.

But now he couldn't take it anymore. Now he had to take the chance and hope for the best.

His eyes flicked up for a moment. Wormmon directed the cleaning. Gazimon held the chain loosely: a bit too loose. Daisuke knew this would be the best, the only chance that he had.

He swung around, wings snapping open as he did, knocking the Gazimon across the room, and pulling the chain out of the slave Digimon's furry paws. He pulled it in close so no one could grab it from him and pelted for the door.

"Daisuke! Stop that! He's going to be _so mad_ at you!" Wormmon cried out, wriggling after. Daisuke threw a quick glance over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Wormmon." He didn't take the time for anything else. He didn't dare.

Instead, he raced down the hallway, searching for anything that could be a way out. He passed a few doors and windows, some of the doors more like doorways. Those he passed through quickly, if nervously, wondering if Kaiser had done anything so he couldn't go through them.

The farther away from the Kaiser's quarters he managed to get, the quicker he ran. The longer he was out like this, the more chances Kaiser would return.

He almost didn't see it when he passed it. Only the tingle of fresh, clean air told him something was different about that room. Daisuke stopped and hurried back, peering around.

 _This is...this is where we came in, the first day._

This was the launching bay, where AirDramon and whatever else Kaiser used as his air force took off. He wasn't sure if there was a way to close it and someone just forgot to or if this was a weakness in the fortress's defenses. He did know one thing about it:

It was his path to freedom.

Daisuke paid no attention to any other noises. He leaped through the opening, let himself fall until only cool clean air surrounded him and the fortress drew just a bit out of reach…

Then his wings snapped open and for the first time in months, Daisuke flew free.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	2. Chapter 2

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,624|| **Story Word Count:** 3,126|| **Chapter Count:** 2/8

* * *

He was free.

The limited moments when he'd flown before, either at the end of his chains or in a roofed over area where he couldn't escape, didn't even begin to compare to being outside of the fortress, free to go wherever he wanted, free to _go home_ at long last.

Daisuke stretched his wings as far as he could, breathing deeply and letting it all out in the biggest laugh possible.

 _How long has it been since I really laughed?_ Too long. There hadn't been anything to laugh about while he stumped along behind the Kaiser or knelt at his feet and tried his best to please him just so he could eat.

But now he could laugh, he could smile, he could and would do anything he wanted, just because he wanted to!

He stopped paying attention to where he was going, so long as it was away from the fortress. A quick look around told him that he didn't recognize this area, but he didn't stress himself about it. He didn't want to stress about anything, ever again.

Instead, he soared as far and as fast as he could, glad that he'd eaten well that morning, because he would need it now. He spun here and there, laughing even louder, eyes bright with joy, dancing on the wind and curving into the breeze.

"I'm free!" He shouted it as loud as his lungs could make the words. "I'm going home!"

He curved backwards, darting around, leaping onto the tops of trees – hoping one of them wasn't a Jureimon – and coursed over a lake, reaching down to run his fingers through the sparkling waters, tossing up handfuls to catch the sun.

Daisuke paid no attention to how long he'd been out there. He didn't think he had any reason to. Why should he, when he was free?

Only when long strands of shadows began to reach across the sky did it dawn on him just how long he'd been out there. He stopped where he was, perched on top of a tree branch, and stared to the west.

"He left this morning," Daisuke murmured, "and he said he wasn't going to be gone that long. He'd be back before noon."

Trails of cold shivered their way down his spine. By now the Kaiser must've returned to the fortress, which meant that he knew Daisuke wasn't there anymore.

That was all right, though. Sort of.

 _I've been out most of the day and he still hasn't found me. I did it. I got away._

He wanted to think that, to believe it down to his core, but he knew it wasn't completely real just yet. He wasn't back home yet, and only then would it be _real_.

And he'd spent his day sky-dancing instead of going back where he truly belonged.

Daisuke shook his head, smacked himself a little, and took back off into the sky. _They're going to be home by now already, I bet. So I have to find one of those portals, and see if I can get in touch with someone. Or find one of the Digimon._

Where would V-mon be? The others had found him; he knew that much, because he'd seen them all together on those rare occasions he'd been allowed to watch his friends. But Kaiser never let him learn too much, not enough to spark genuine hope.

So he'd have to look for his partner, or for any of the other partner Digimon. Only one tiny problem remained with that.

It was getting dark, and he'd never had the best night vision anyway. And the more he flew, the hungrier he got. His stomach gave a harsh rumble even as he thought that, reminding him how much energy flying took.

He dropped down through the tree branches, wiggling this way and that to avoid getting caught in them, pulling his wings in closer until he got to the ground.

"All right, if I were some decent fruit, or just something to eat that grows on trees, where would I be?"

There was a simple answer to that, but not the one he really wanted it to be, since that was 'in front of me, ready to be eaten'. Even being free didn't mean life would be that convenient for him.

So he wandered around in search of food of any kind. Going back up into the sky to search for that lake, which could possibly have fish in it, slipped back into his mind over and over. Only one thing kept him from doing it: he couldn't see in the dark, and if Kaiser tracked him down, he wouldn't know it until too late.

 _Yeah, not doing that again._

He rubbed absently at the collar around his neck. He needed to take it off, but he'd found out the hard way weeks after his imprisonment that it wouldn't, no matter how hard he tried. It latched in the back somewhere, but he'd never been able to find the exact spot. Sometimes he searched for it when he had nothing else to do and Kaiser wasn't there to punish him for it, but the results never changed.

 _Once I find the others, I'll get it off then._ Hope wasn't his particular area of expertise, but he'd learned a lot about it since being captured. It kept him going as much as courage did, or the sure and certain knowledge that his friends _were_ looking for him and _would_ find him sooner or later.

Something moved overhead. Daisuke reacted without bothering to look at what it was, darting for the nearest batch of cover that he could find and wrapping his wings tightly around himself, his heart in his throat and his blood colder than ice.

 _The fortress?_ He couldn't tell. Was it too fast? Not fast enough? His throat closed hard and he tightened his wings in, not wanting to give any hint that he was there at all. He wouldn't give up his freedom, not after only a handful of hours. He just _wouldn't_.

* * *

Kaiser's boots echoed faintly back from the steel corridors as he made his way to his personal quarters. He'd been gone only a handful of hours and yet he wished to see his pet again, to feel the warmth of Daisuke's feathers against his fingers.

 _I'll have to give him a treat of some kind. He's been well-behaved lately._

Though in all fairness, such good behavior worried him. Daisuke wasn't obedient by nature, and his training had been slow and full of obstacles. What kept him quiet was only knowing that he couldn't escape and that Kaiser would come after him if he even tried.

Which was why when Kaiser stepped into his private quarters and found it empty of his pretty caged Flier, his hands clenched into fists and his eyes blazed with rage, even as he wasn't surprised in the slightest.

Not surprised, no. Daisuke would, of course, take whatever he perceived as a chance to escape. He'd expected this for weeks now.

But _furious_ beyond the ability of words to express. He whirled, one word ripping out of his lips.

"Wormmon!"

His supposed partner wriggled up moments later, just as Kaiser began to tap his whip on his hip.

"Where did he go and when did he get out?" There wasn't any need to question _how_. Kaiser didn't _care_ how. He wanted his pet back and the sooner the better.

"We were cleaning your room when it happened," Wormmon murmured, head tucked down. "We had to take the chain off of the wall to get to the floor and he grabbed it and ran off. I think he got out through the launch bay." He scrabbled his tiny claws at the floor. "I tried to tell him not to. I told him you'd be mad at him."

Kaiser sneered down at the pathetic Digimon. "Clearly you didn't make it plain _enough_. Have everyone who was on that cleaning detail punished." He suspected Wormmon's idea of 'punishing' them would be to send them to bed without their dinner, but he had other duties on his mind at the moment.

He stalked his way from there to his control room, lips set into a smirk that would've terrified Daisuke if he'd seen it.

 _What a foolish, foolish pet I have. He thinks that just leaving my fortress is enough to grant him his freedom. I'm the only one who can do that, and I have no intentions whatsoever of doing so at all._

If anything, this little show of rebellion made him want Daisuke even more, to tame the wild creature to his hand in ways that nothing could deny. That would require punishment once he had Daisuke rounded up, but Kaiser already had ideas on how to do that. He'd splintered Daisuke's will already. This would solidify their respective stations once and for all.

It might take him a little time to find his pet, but he knew he would succeed. Daisuke couldn't hide from him no matter how much he wanted to.

That collar wasn't there just to show Daisuke who his master was, nor just to look attractive on him – though it did do that very well indeed. He made a note to look into some other clothes for Daisuke as well, if he could manage to earn them after this situation resolved. The Kaiser's pet had to look his best.

But that collar had another function altogether and Kaiser wanted to see what results he was getting from it.

Every good master made certain that if their pet ran away, there was a way to track him, after all. Kaiser wasn't any different in that regard.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	3. Chapter 3

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,620|| **Story Word Count:** 4,746|| **Chapter Count:** 3/8

* * *

Daisuke forced himself to move, when every instinct he possessed told him to stay where he was, not draw attention to himself. If he'd been anywhere else except out in plain sight, he would probably have listened to those instincts. But now he needed to get _out_ of plain sight.

An outcropping of rock provided a bit of shelter. It wasn't very big and the only way he managed to hide under it was to pull his wings in as tightly as they could and hold his breath, hoping that whatever soared overhead wouldn't have seen that tiny flicker of movement.

He waited. Waited. _Waited_ , wishing that he didn't have to breathe, keeping it to the shallowest of breaths, listening. He couldn't look out. He had to just stay _hidden_.

Kaiser caught him the first time because he hadn't paid attention to what was going on around him. He wouldn't let that happen again.

He had no idea of how long he huddled under there, hating that he had to do it in the first place. This wasn't his nature, to hide from anything that could bring him harm. He'd always been more than ready to bring a fight to whatever stood against him, he and V-mon together, or by himself in the days before V-mon.

Only now he didn't have V-mon and if he got into a fight with one of the Kaiser's slaves, then he wouldn't be able to watch for the Kaiser himself.

Caution wasn't a lesson that Motomiya Daisuke learned easily, but months kept chained and leashed to the Kaiser's hand, begging submissively for every meal: that did it very well indeed.

Whatever it was that passed overhead vanished only moments after Daisuke got underneath the concealing ridge. He still didn't move, waiting and checking for any sign of it returning or anything else – like the Kaiser's fortress – coming along.

 _I don't think that_ _ **was**_ _the fortress. He always likes to take it slow._ And whatever that was, it had gone by fairly quickly.

That still didn't mean that it wasn't something he needed to keep an eye out for, though, he reminded himself. Kaiser had a lot of AirDramon and Devidramon and a few other Digimon, all of whom could fly. Not all of them could do very well at night, but the point was that Kaiser had Digimon who could fly and by this time, Kaiser knew that Daisuke escaped, which meant any enslaved Digimon would be looking for him.

 _So I have to find the others._ He bit his lip, thinking. _I hope they have my D-3 and D-Terminal._ Kaiser had had it taken somewhere else right after capturing Daisuke. At least he said he had. For all Daisuke knew, that had been some kind of a hidden code to trick him, so if he'd ever escaped, Kaiser would have a way to lure him back.

He wasn't sure if Kaiser were that cunning but he also wasn't sure if he wasn't, and after all this time, the idea that Kaiser would do anything to keep him had been very thoroughly engrained into him.

First and foremost, finding the others, and he had no idea of where to look for any of the Digimon that would be there at night. How long until sunrise? How long until the afternoon, when his friends would stand a chance of turning up again?

Unless it was the weekend. Could it be the weekend? He'd stopped paying serious attention to the passage of time because he'd not needed to. Now he regretted that.

 _First things first. I'll look for Digimon who aren't Kaiser's slaves._ They could probably tell him something. Best thing he could do right now.

After taking another few minutes to make certain there weren't any dangerous movements in the area, Daisuke darted out from under the rock shelf and spun himself higher into the air. His stomach still demanded food and he hoped he could find a Digimon village or even a restaurant soon. He didn't have any money on him, but he'd gladly wash dishes for the chance to eat.

He darted around, careful not to go back the way that he thought he'd come – though after all the sky dancing he'd done in celebration of his freedom he couldn't be sure of that at all – watching out for any lights, both above and below. A few Digimon swept by him, sending jolts of fear all through him the first time or two, but none of them paid him any mind at all, or had the red eyes of enslaved Digimon.

That helped him relax even more, the sure certainty that he'd genuinely escaped and would never go back stealing over him in a comforting wave.

* * *

 _There._ Kaiser rested one finger on the small blinking dot that represented Daisuke. The map it blinked on told him the location as well: quite some distance from the fortress. _He's flown quite a way. I wouldn't think he had that much energy in him._

He wanted Daisuke to keep himself in good condition, but his dear pet didn't always listen to what he wanted. He would fly on occasion, when Kaiser let him do so, and he ate from Kaiser's own hands, once Kaiser made it very clear that he would not eat at all otherwise. His portion of the room even included a comfortable set of cushions – beds weren't always the best for Fliers, after all. He did have to keep Daisuke chained up at night, though, not wanting him to run off.

 _Perhaps once I have him back and he understands that he can't escape me, he'll have learned differently._ It was an interesting thought and one Kaiser intended to explore once he'd scooped up his pet and brought him home.

His hands missed the warmth of Daisuke's hair and wings. He wanted to go right there and get him back without hesitation, but the more he considered matters, the more he thought this might be something he could turn into a proper lesson for Daisuke. Not just that he couldn't escape his master – no one could escape Kaiser, after all – but that he shouldn't even try.

And that his friends had stopped looking for him after all this time as well.

 _And if he won't believe it, I can certainly convince him._ He'd been considering that for some time anyway. He hadn't paid enough attention to the remaining Chosen to know if it were true or not, but Kaiser actually did not care. He wanted Daisuke to _believe_ that. It would make matters so much easier, especially given all the effort Kaiser put into such matters before now.

 _Why would they keep on looking for someone that they're not going to find?_ A small, cruel smile played over his lips. They would not find Daisuke because he wouldn't _let_ them find him. Daisuke remained where a good pet should, serving his master, and if ever they did somehow find him, what they would find would _be_ the Kaiser's pet and not their former friend.

It also didn't hurt that he'd encouraged them to fight _him_ more than to spend their time wandering around looking for what they wouldn't find. Giving them problems that weren't Daisuke made for such interesting footage he could show Daisuke now.

He brushed his fingers over one of the screens before him and the map resolved from blocks and lines into full surveillance of the area. Night made it harder to see, even for him, but after a few minutes of careful searching, he spied Daisuke as the other flew past one of the Evil Towers.

Kaiser let out a small longing sigh at the sight of him. His clothes remained tattered and worn, his hair hadn't been brushed lately, and he carried the chain used to keep him to the wall wrapped around his arm where it wouldn't catch of anything.

There were few points where Kaiser thought Daisuke had been more alluring to him. Despite everything, he kept enough strength and focus to take a chance to escape and from the way the Flier kept looking around, he did his best now to avoid being caught again. It wouldn't do any good, of course, but Kaiser thought the effort adorable.

He rested one hand on Daisuke's image, brushing against where he could see the collar. _He'll try to get rid of it. I know him. But it won't do any good._

Now, where would Daisuke be likely to land? He would be looking for his friends, that wasn't difficult to work out. But he wouldn't be able to find them until the next day at he earliest and even then, Kaiser could distract them without any real effort. He had all the advantages here, being able to keep tabs on both targets. If Daisuke didn't figure that out, and come to the proper conclusion that his best course of action would be to return and beg his master's forgiveness, then Kaiser would have to make it plain to him once recovering him.

Digimon kept several small villages scattered around the world. Once they'd even had towns and one or two things that could masquerade as cities, such as where Andromon lived – he made a note to himself to go recapture Andromon now that he had the Evil Spirals. The longer his reign extended, the less and less he saw signs of anything more than a few huts huddled together.

Kaiser liked that. It meant less places for Daisuke to hide at the moment, and in the larger scheme of things, it meant he was _winning_.

And to the victor went all the spoilers, including one defiant Flier.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	4. Chapter 4

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,534|| **Story Word Count:** 6,280|| **Chapter Count:** 4/8

* * *

The restaurant Daisuke found was tucked into a fold by a river, much like the one he and the others met Mimi and Michael at. He had to fight to remember that sometimes, like he fought to remember almost anything that happened before the Kaiser's net wrapped around him and he'd spent all the time since in submission to his enemy.

There weren't many Digimon there when he peeked inside, which definitely became a point in its favor. Any Digimon he saw could be enslaved by the Kaiser and tell him where Daisuke was. So seeing only a minor handful, he tucked his wings around himself and entered, heading for the counter.

"Excuse me," he said, catching the attention of one of the Gotsumon who took care of the place. The rock Digimon turned toward him. "Hey, have you got a second?"

Gotsumon made his way over there. "You want something to eat?" The Digimon gave him a quick look up and down. "Which one are you, human or Digimon?"

He'd had that question asked before. The wings tended to throw people off. So he just shrugged. "I'm a Flier. Mostly human. And I need something to eat." He hesitated for a breath. "But I don't have anything to pay with." He'd checked. He had no idea of where his money, what little he'd had, vanished off to, but he suspected the Kaiser's hand in that.

Gotsumon started to turn away. "No money, no food. Rules of the house."

Daisuke reached out a hand, his stomach rumbling harshly as he did. "What about if I work for it? I'll wash dishes for as long as I've got to, in exchange for a couple of meals."

Gotsumon now looked back toward him, head tilted to the side. "Is that so? And why should we trust a human not to run off the firs chance you get?"

"Cause I'm also a Chosen Child!" Daisuke declared, puffing his chest out and spreading his wings. He yelped a second later, his wing knocking over a thankfully empty chair. He pulled his wings back in and set the chair up again, chuckling a little weakly at that. "Uh, yeah. Motomiya Daisuke. Chosen of Courage and Friendship." He really hoped they didn't ask about seeing anything like his D-3 or Digimentals.

The three restaurant Gotsumon drew closer together, staring at him and then whispering among themselves. The one who'd talked to him before spoke up.

"The one who's been taken prisoner by the Digimon Kaiser?"

Daisuke tensed, fingers clenching into fists. "How'd you know about that?"

"We heard the other Chosen talking about it," another one of them said. "They're going to be coming back around soon."

Daisuke's heart skipped a beat. "They're coming here? The guys are going to be here?" He wanted to learn how to breathe again because somehow, he'd forgotten. To see them all again...he could hardly wait for it.

"Maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after," the third Gotsumon added. "Checking to make sure there aren't any more of the Kaiser's towers around here. They cleaned out the one that was here the other day but it never hurts to double check."

Daisuke nodded eagerly. "Let me stay here, please! I'll wash dishes, I'll sweep the floors, whatever you need me to do!" This was his best chance to find the others! Maybe even his only chance.

Again the Gotsumon muttered among themselves, then all three nodded, and the one he'd talked to first came closer.

"You got yourself a deal. You wash the dishes, sweep and mop the floor, and pretty much do anything else that we want you to do around here, and you'll have room and board until the Chosen can get here."

"Or until the Kaiser does," one of the others muttered. Daisuke stiffened, wings tightening even more around him.

"He's not around, is he?"

Gotsumon Number Two shook his head. "But I bet you if you've run away from him, he's looking for you."

Daisuke didn't want to think about that. He squared up his shoulders and raised his head. "Yeah, well, he's not here now. Can I get something to eat?"

"Just wait over there," the third Gotsumon gestured to a table off to one side. "We'll bring you something and you can start cleaning up after you're done."

The three nodded in unison, two of them heading for the kitchen, and the last one remaining behind the counter. Daisuke settled at the table, letting his wings spread out a bit, and wished that he had his D-Terminal so he could contact the others.

 _Are they going to have it? Or is it still there_ He hadn't bothered thinking about it before now, when he'd spent his days at the Kaiser's feet. What use would it be? But now when this personal nightmare of his hovered on the verge of ending, he wanted to let the others know that he was there and he was all right and wanted to go home.

At least he thought he was all right. He didn't know what he'd be like if – or when – he saw the Kaiser face to face again. Even now he could remember what it felt like to have Kaiser's hand either on his head or buried in his wings, and that touch didn't hurt at all, it felt rather _good_.

He swallowed and fiddled with the napkin on the table. He needed something to keep his attention focused, at least to the point he didn't start shredding something, let alone dropping feathers. His wings ached from all the flying that he'd done earlier anyway. He was too out of shape to do that again any time soon.

 _I'll fix that,_ he promised himself. _I'm going to get in really good shape, like I was before. Better, even._

He jerked a bit when Gotsumon set a plate spread with all kinds of food – some of which he couldn't identify and all of which steamed hot and smelled delicious – in front of him. His eyes lit up as he turned to his new host.

"Thanks!" And he didn't have to beg for it! He did have to work for it, but he'd done that deal because he wanted to, not because he didn't have any other choice.

Okay, maybe he didn't quite have a choice but this was still so different from the situation with the Kaiser.

"You can get one refill of the late," Gotsumon told him, "but after that, you've got to get to washing the dishes."

Daisuke nodded his understanding, too eager to get to the food than anything else. As soon as Gotsumon left, he started eating, not bothering with anything like proper manners as long as he managed to get everything in his mouth without choking.

* * *

Kaiser's fortress moved onward through the thickening night, targeted for where the signal from Daisuke's collar flared softly. Kaiser dined in front of his viewscreens, as opposed to his room tonight.

It wasn't as much fun eating in there without Daisuke humbled at his feet, ready to beg for his dinner once Kaiser granted him permission to do so.

He would have to add that to Daisuke's punishment once he'd scooped him back up. He'd already made a mental list of the sins his pet committed: ignoring his master's orders to remain on the fortress, staying out long past what would've been his curfew if he'd been allowed out in the first place, forcing Kaiser to push up his plans to take certain areas by fleeing as far as he did, daring to believe that the Chosen still cared enough about him to look for him in the first place, and not treating his master with the proper respect.

Depriving his master of the pleasure of seeing him submit and beg yet again would definitely increase his punishment. Kaiser hadn't decided on just what it would be, wanting to wait until he'd recaptured him before making his final choices.

 _I'll let him think everything is all right for now,_ he decided. He would take his time getting there. Daisuke's collar would alert him whenever Daisuke moved, so even if he carried on from where he was now – a restaurant run by Gotsumon – his master could and would be on his trail.

"Ken-chan?" Wormmon murmured from far too close. Kaiser's head snapped around, eyes blazing.

"How many times do I need to tell you not to call me that?"

Wormmon flinched back at once. "I'm sorry, K-Kaiser," he murmured, ducking his head down. "But I wanted to tell you that – that – I ..."

Kaiser flopped himself back in his chair and turned his attention to the screens before him, shoving the remains of his dinner side. He hadn't left much, since there wasn't anyone to share them with now.

"I don't care. Get out of here."

Whatever else Wormmon had to say, Kaiser ignored it, splitting his attention now between watching Daisuke shoveling food into his mouth and one of his favored projects, one that he'd let slide since capturing Daisuke. One or both of them would be his in the very near future.

He liked both. He would have both.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	5. Chapter 5

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,620|| **Story Word Count:** 7,900|| **Chapter Count:** 5/8

* * *

Daisuke put the last of the dishes away to dry, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

"If my mom could see me now," he muttered, taking a look at the kitchen. He'd never cleaned so much in his entire life. But since he got food and a place to stay for a night or two out of it, he'd clean it all again if he had to.

He didn't want to, by any means, but he'd do it.

One of the Gotsumon peeked in on him. "All done?"

"Yeah. Unless there's more out there?" He couldn't tell from where he was and the Gotsumon spent more time getting cooking done than keeping him updated on what the diner situation was like.

The Digimon shook his head. "That's everything. At least until we open up in the morning."

Daisuke tried not to sigh. This remained a better situation than kneeling at the Kaiser's feet. But every part of him hurt and he could hardly move for how tired he was.

Gotsumon beckoned to him. "Come on, we've got a place for you. It's not much, but we kind of weren't expecting company."

"Hey, no problem!" Daisuke managed to work his way out of the apron they'd given him and tucked it out of the way before he followed his host. "You guys are really taking a chance doing this, you know." He hated thinking about how much of a chance it really was.

"We know," Gotsumon replied, angling to look at him. "The way we figure it is that if we give _you_ shelter, then the other Chosen Children will help _us_ if the Kaiser gets here and starts trouble."

"You know they would!" Daisuke didn't doubt it at all. They'd do it even if he wasn't there.

Dozens of tiny words, almost invisible pricks to his mental armor, began to swarm through his mind as he followed the Gotsumon to where he'd sleep. All of them in the Kaiser's smug, arrogant voice.

 _They stopped looking for you, Daisuke. They know that what I take, I keep._

 _Do you really think that even if they found you I'd let you leave? You're mine now. My pet. My property._

 _Why would you even want to leave me? I don't hurt you. I give you everything you could ask for. You really should be more grateful, Daisuke. I could be much crueler than I am to you._

His throat closed up and tears of frustration pricked at his eyes. He fought to ignore them, though.

 _It's all lies,_ he told himself. _Just him trying to trick me. They'd never stop looking for me. We never stopped looking for Agumon. He didn't keep Agumon. We didn't let him._

But it had been a while since he'd really seen them looking. They had to keep fighting the Kaiser's minions as well as looking for him and doing one meant they couldn't do the other as well.

Daisuke didn't want to admit it, but if they'd asked him which he preferred they do, it was fight the Kaiser, since fighting the Kaiser and beating him would mean his own freedom.

 _Or I could just run away, like I did._ Daisuke grinned to himself at that, bidding Gotsumon good night and curling up on the pile of blankets provided for him. This looked a lot like a storage room hastily cleaned out, but other than that, it wasn't too cold and kind of comfortable.

"Oh, Daisuke!" That same Gotsumon poked his head in. "We kind of forgot to tell you. You need to be careful if you go outside. There's a Dokugumon who lives not all that far from here. He comes over sometimes trying to steal food from us. He hasn't been in a while, so we're expecting him any day now. As far as I know, he doesn't have one of the Kaiser's spirals on him. He just likes to steal our food, since it's easy." He gestured towards Daisuke's wings. "I wouldn't be surprised if he thought you were food. So keep an eye out if you're out there."

"Oh. Uh. Okay." Daisuke nodded as he resettled himself into the blankets. "Thanks for the warning."

That gave him more thoughts than he wanted to have on how dangerous things could be for him without V-mon around. He could usually fly away from most trouble, though. He hoped this would be one of those types of trouble.

When he dreamed, he dreamed of flying, the open skies and the wind kissing his wings.

And a shadowy presence that reached for him with a leash he could not escape.

* * *

During Daisuke's stay in the fortress, Kaiser made a point of going to sleep at what some people would term a 'reasonable hour', if only because he enjoyed spending time with Daisuke and sleep was one of the times that happened.

So now, with Daisuke gone, the Kaiser sat in his control room and put the finishing touches on his plans.

 _I'll wait until the afternoon,_ he decided. _He'll start expecting the other Chosen by then._

Not that they would turn up at all. He examined the program in front of him, pleased with how it looked so far.

 _It won't take them long to break through it, but it will last long enough._

A lock program, nothing more. It would block all the gateways within a certain range for something like six hours.

Kaiser considered it, turning thoughts over in his mind, not quite pleased and not certain of why just yet.

 _This presumes that they'll try to come through there,_ he mused, eyes flicking to the map where Daisuke's location glimmered bright. _If they can't get through there, they may start to wonder why I blocked it off in the first place._

So he would need a distraction, something that wouldn't let them realize they'd been distracted in the first place.

A slow, wicked smile slid over his lips as the perfect idea dawned on him. His fingers flew over the keyboard, checking on old records from before his capture of his pretty pet, then carefully set up a program to replicate it.

 _This should keep them out of the way long enough for me to take back what's mine._

With the lock program in place and this distraction, he wouldn't have any problems getting _that_ accomplished.

Once the program was in place, he set it to start in the mid-afternoon. The lock program would be set up once he made his move toward Daisuke. He didn't want to give them any more time than he had to in order to break it; he might want to use it again at a later point. If they didn't even notice it, it would be best of all, but he wasn't counting on that.

They did have one or two people on their side who had some kind of computer skills. He didn't think they could compare to him, of course.

Now he had everything that he wanted or needed to accomplish tomorrow's tasks. He knew that he should go to bed; he'd need all of his rest. He'd caught sight of Wormmon more than once peering at him with something that looked like worry on his face. Kaiser dismissed the thought right away. It made no sense for Wormmon to worry about him.

But he still didn't move. He turned his attention to the monitor keeping watch over Daisuke and stared at it for a few minutes.

 _You'll never dare to leave me again when I'm through with you,_ Kaiser promised. _You shouldn't have dared this time._

* * *

Wormmon wanted to go to bed. He wanted _Ken_ to go to bed. He'd told Daisuke that it wasn't a good idea to try to run away, and it wasn't just because Ken would do anything to get him back, and would punish him horribly when he did.

But Ken didn't take proper care of himself without Daisuke around. He didn't eat right. He didn't sleep properly. He just sat where he was and plotted.

At least Ken's plotting would bring Daisuke back, which meant that he'd start to take care of himself again.

 _I wish he'd be more like Ken and less like the Kaiser, though._ He'd hoped since the first moment the plans to capture Daisuke were made that Ken would somehow make a comeback. Surely this interest in another person meant that it could happen. It had to, didn't it?

Wormmon wasn't sure anymore.

He wanted to go find V-mon and let him know where Daisuke had hidden himself. The thought about a Digimon partner and their Digimon being separated hadn't set well with him since this started. He knew how much V-mon missed Daisuke, too, and wanted to see him again. It wasn't a good idea to try to meet up with him since Daisuke's capture. If Ken got so much as a whiff that Wormmon talked to the other side in _any_ kind of way…

It wouldn't be pretty for anyone. If he got lucky he'd just be kicked out of the fortress. But that meant that he would be away from _his_ partner and he wanted that even less than he wanted V-mon away from his.

He let out a long sigh and got himself as comfortable as he could, where he could watch Ken without being seen himself. Maybe he could find a way to send a message without anyone knowing that he'd done it.

At that moment, a tiny spark lit inside of his mind and he made a note to find one of Daisuke's feathers. It wouldn't be much but perhaps it would convey a little hope.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	6. Chapter 6

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,525|| **Story Word Count:** 9,427|| **Chapter Count:** 6/8

* * *

Mornings at the restaurant started early. Everything needed to be scrubbed down once more – even after the scrubbing of the night before – and put into place to get ready for the first flush of customers. Morning meals had to be started as well, and a few things started for the lunch rush.

Daisuke wolfed down his breakfast, still relishing that he didn't have to beg for anything and that he earned this honestly by working for it instead of the Kaiser's far too silken insistence that this was what his pet _deserved_. He still had a cup of tea he drank from as he started washing dishes and helping to wipe down tables while the first few customers lined up to take orders.

No one seemed afraid. No one looked out of the window except to check the weather. Which to Daisuke meant one thing: the Kaiser wasn't around and no one expected him to be around. That made this time all the sweeter.

"Daisuke," the lead Gotsumon called for him, leaning into the kitchen. "We need some more firewood and I can't spare anyone else." He gestured through the back door. "Could you go bring us in some?"

"Sure!" He'd managed to get a break in between loads of dishes anyway. He hurried out there, letting his wings put an extra spring to his step as he did so. He could hardly wait to get back into the skies on a regular basis, but that would have to wait until he reunited with the others.

For a moment, everything darkened around him, and Daisuke jerked his head up, heart sinking. He didn't want to go back, he didn't want to stare into that too perfect, too beautiful face of the Kaiser…

Then he relaxed, wings easing down a little.

Just a cloud, passing over the sun. That was all. He breathed easier and hurried out to the pile of wood. He wondered where they got it chopped from even as he gathered up as much as he could and headed back inside.

He didn't like the way his spine tingled as he moved, though. It had only been a cloud, but the longer he was outside, the more the strange feeling that someone was watching him crept over him anyway.

 _Well, if there is someone, I can just fly away from them._ Flying was a Flyer's instinct, after all. There wasn't much that couldn't be escaped by taking to the air.

A movement in the shadows of the forest to one side of the restaurant caught his eye even as he started back into the building. He stopped and stared, the tips of his wings twitching, ready to take off if he had to.

 _Nothing._ If there'd been something or someone there at all, they weren't there now. Daisuke stared for a few more seconds, until a call from within reminded him of his job, and he hurried in. He didn't want to get the Gotsumon mad at him and maybe fire him. At least not until his friends turned up.

 _Wonder if I should try to find one of those TV things. Try and send a message like that._

It wasn't a bad idea, though he had no idea of where one could be found. Though if the others had come here, then there had to be one around _somewhere_. He just didn't now where it could be and going off to look for it meant that he wouldn't be here with the food and drink and a place to sleep that wasn't by the Kaiser's bed.

But he wanted to try it anyway. He wanted to see his friends and to know for a solid, unchangeable fact that everything the Kaiser said about them was a lie.

He knew it was anyway but there was a really big difference between telling himself that they were looking for him and hugging them for himself.

He settled the wood down where it belonged and headed back to the sink. Part of the kitchen wall, the one that didn't stand between the kitchen itself and the main eating area, was taken up by a row of windows and the door that led outside. He could see the woodpile from where he washed, if he turned and looked, but he hadn't bothered doing so all the time that he washed and cleaned in here. He had too much he needed to do for that.

"Thanks!" One of the Gotsumon waved at him, heading over to scoop up a few logs. "Lunch is going to be soon, you hungry?"

Daisuke didn't bother holding back his laughter. It felt good to let it all out. "Always!"

He washed dishes with even more energy, wanting to be nice and hungry once his turn to eat came. He had to have enough dishes done so that they could coast through the lunch rush and he wasn't quite t here yet. The more dishes clean, the better.

* * *

 _Oh, he looks so delicious!_ Dokugumon couldn't see all that well, but what he could told him that this new helper for the Gotsumon was too juicy for words.

The Gotsumon refused to give him the food that he wanted and needed. They even disagreed when he tried to eat some of their patrons! He really didn't know what they wanted.

So he took what he wanted and didn't care about their needs. Granted, that meant that they didn't get nearly as much business as they might have otherwise, and he needed to make certain that none of the ones that he took had on those annoying Evil Rings – he didn't want any attention from the Kaiser whatsoever – but all in all, he managed fairly well.

And this helper looked just the perfect meal to wrap the night up with. Dokugumon wasn't ready to claim his dinner just yet, but he would get it when he wanted it.

But to do that, he would need to set up a trap. That wasn't too difficult to manage, though.

Spiders were very, very good at traps.

* * *

"Do you think we should tell him where he can get in touch with the Chosen?" The eldest of the Gotsumon asked his brothers. "I mean, it's not that far. He could fly there in just a couple of minutes."

The second of them shook his head. "Let's wait for him to get rid of Dokugumon first. We're never going to get our customers to come back if we don't."

"How's he going to do that without his partner or his friends?" The third questioned. "Even if he leads Dokugumon away, he'll just come back. And the longer he's here, the better chances that the Kaiser will find us."

All three of them shuddered at that. They'd heard stories from other Gotsumon about what it was like to be enslaved by the Kaiser and none of them wanted to experience it for themselves. Taking Daisuke in was more of a risk than they'd let him know about.

Though he probably knew anyway, since he'd been the Kaiser's prisoner himself.

"We'll wait for the Chosen," the third said after several quiet, long minutes. "They can get rid of Dokugumon for us and take Daisuke off of our hands so that the Kaiser will leave us alone. If we don't have him, he won't have any interest in us."

"We can hope, anyway," the first one muttered. "But I don't think we have any better options."

* * *

Kaiser dragged his eyes open and stared around himself balefully. He hadn't bothered going to his room all night long. What use was it to be where his pet wasn't? At least here he could watch Daisuke when he wanted to.

The monitors all showed Daisuke and the area around the restaurant, with another one turned to the nearest gateway. He wouldn't put his plans into play until he was ready to go get his pet, but he wanted to know if they turned up before he expected them to anyway. They could be annoyingly unpredictable, even without Daisuke around to confuse matters.

He watched Daisuke for a few hungry moments before he checked the time. It wasn't as early as he'd thought it would be: around noon. He would wait just a bit longer, but no more than the first time that Daisuke stepped outside.

A quick check told him which Digimon were in the area, and the awareness of Dokugumon gave him certain ideas. He didn't want to enslave the creature, not yet.

But the time would come. He knew nothing would stand in his way to taking back what was his.

An alarm sounded. Kaiser snapped his head around to the monitor and he growled, eyes flashing in rage, before he slammed one fist down on his chair's arm.

"You!" He opened up pa communication line to the nearest Digimon under his control in the area. "Get over to the gateway and crush that idiot who just crossed over!"

He would not let Takaishi Takeru take away what was his, whether or not the Child of Hope knew Daisuke was there or not.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	7. Chapter 7

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,562|| **Story Word Count:** 10,989| **Chapter Count:** 7/8

* * *

Takeru strolled along, eyes far more alert than they would've been just a few months earlier. None of them dared to let their guard down for so much as a moment and risk missing any sort of sign that the Kaiser was in the area.

The Kaiser, or Daisuke.

From what they could gather, Daisuke hadn't been out of the fortress since his capture. It was hard to get real information from there, since freed Digimon remembered little to nothing of their time with their Evil Rings or Spirals on, and none of the ones they'd freed had seen Daisuke in the first place. Neither had anyone else, even those who'd seen the Kaiser.

 _We are_ _ **going**_ _to find him._ Takeru didn't let that conviction slip away from him. It wasn't in his nature, for one thing.

Guilt gnawed at him. Yamato would visit the Digital World soon and there weren't any words for how much Takeru didn't want him to. He'd lost one friend already – even if it was temporary, he reminded himself – and he didn't want to lose his brother as well. If the Kaiser was in the habit of collecting Fliers…

Another, more reasonable part of himself – one that still made him queasy just to consider – told him that couldn't be the case, because there'd been plenty of chances for the Kaiser to take Iori if he really wanted to.

That didn't mean that he liked Yamato coming to the Digital World to help in the search, hopefully finding some of the signs of a Flier that the rest of them might miss. No more than he liked Iori still coming there. But Iori had Armadimon and could armor evolve. Yamato did have Gabumon, and the two of them worked well together when it came to flying and running as a team.

Patamon's tiny paw swatted at his ear. "Takeru, look out!"

Takeru looked up just in time to see a bone club striking at him and dodged as fast as he could. He wished for a single moment that the Flyer genetics in his family had manifested in him like they had in his brother, but only for that moment. After that, he was too busy trying to get to his D-Terminal to worry about anything.

Hanumon roared and struck again just as Takeru got his hands on his D-Terminal and backpedaled to give himself some room.

"Ready, Patamon?"

"Ready!"

Takeru hadn't ever been so glad that Armor Evolution took only a few seconds. Unfortunately, even those few seconds could be dangerous, since again Hanumon brought his club down and Takeru didn't quite get out of the way in time, not completely. Pain racketed up his arm and he fell back, sliding a short distance away.

"Takeru!" Pegasumon blasted a Needle Rain at Hanumon, following it up with a quick kick before going over to his partner.

Takeru staggered back to his feet, holding onto his arm. Few of them had had to deal with any major injuries of any kind during their fight against the Kaiser.

"I'm all right," he lied, not wanting to distract Pegasumon when there was still Hanumon to fight. "Let's get this taken care of!"

"Right!" Pegasumon whirled around, staying just close enough to Takeru so he could get there if any more of the Kaiser's slaves turned up but still could fire at Hanumon. Being able to fly had advantages.

Takeru tried not to wince at that. It wasn't easy.

"Silver Blaze!" Moonlight-tinted blasts blew forth from Pegasumon's mane, slicing into Hanumon and into the Evil Ring on his arm. Another quick strike from Pegasumon's hooves, then a second Needle Rain, and the Ring cracked and fell apart.

Hanumon dropped his club and blinked, rubbing the back of his head and staring around before he looked at Takeru and Pegasumon.

"Chosen Child," he said, his voice deep and respectful. "Did I hurt you?" After the last few months, most Digimon who they freed understood they'd been enslaved once the Ring or Spiral came off, with or without remembering anything permanent.

Takeru winced as he moved his injured arm a bit more than he should have. "Nothing too bad. You know it's not your fault."

"I apologize, though," Hanumon said as he bent his head. "Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

"I don't suppose you have anything I can wrap this up in until I can get back home, do you?" Takeru offered a bit of a smile. He kept a list in the back of his head of everything that the Kaiser did, and this was just another notation on it. Then he hesitated. "You don't remember anything about why you were here, do you? I mean, what the Kaiser wanted you to do?"

It probably wasn't anything that important. Just guard duty, given that they weren't too far away from one of the portals.

Hanumon frowned, searching his memory before he slowly answered. "What I remember is being told to … crush you?"

Takeru nodded; it was about what he expected. Then he froze where he was. _Kaiser almost never attacks us personally anymore. So if he sent Hanumon to do that, what did I do to make him mad? All I did was cross over here._

He looked back at Hanumon. "Do you now if there are any places around here where someone could hide? If they were trying to hide from the Kaiser?" He thought he remembered that Gotsumon-run restaurant being in the area. That was one of the other reasons he'd come; he wanted to make sure Yamato could get in there if they wanted to after searching for any clues. Yamato's wingspan was, after all, fairly impressive. Daisuke might've been able to get in if he needed to, but Yamato, perhaps not so much…

"Just that restaurant," Hanumon confirmed. "Why do ask?"

"It's just a hunch, but… I think I'm going there." He didn't doubt at all that Daisuke would try every chance he got to escape from the Kaiser. He looked over at Pegasumon. "Ready to go?"

"Tell the others first," Pegasumon advised. "We could probably use some backup."

Takeru wasn't going to turn the idea down. He grabbed for his D-Terminal and started typing. _If you're there, Daisuke,_ _ **stay**_ _there until we can get to you._

* * *

Taking care of the kitchen didn't mean just sweeping, mopping, dusting, handling firewood, and doing the dishes. It also included taking out the trash, and in his brief time there, Daisuke hadn't yet had to do that one.

At least not until the oldest of the Gotsumon waved at him to give the dishes a rest for a bit and do just that.

"It's getting a bit high over there," he pointed out, "and we're a little swamped right now."

"Got it!" Daisuke did his best to put on a cheerful face and headed over to take care of that. He couldn't wait for when the other guys finally showed up and got him away from here. He was grateful for the Gotsumons' help in hiding from the Kaiser, but he'd never much liked doing chores when he was at home, let alone anywhere else.

He tugged the bag out to the nearby clearing designated as the trash heap and started to dump it out. He didn't know how the Gotsumon got it taken care of other than that. He'd never even thought about how the Digital World dealt with their trash.

Daisuke turned back to the restaurant and took no more than half a dozen steps before something dropped down in front of him.

Or in fairness, someone: Dokugumon.

"Hello there, morsel!" The spider Digimon chittered at him. "Now just hold still and this will all be over with quickly!"

"No way!" Daisuke could recognize a predator when he saw one. His wings snapped out and he crouched, ready to leap in to the skies in the next heartbeat.

Only before he could get there, Dokugumon spewed out spiderwebs from his mouth, wrapping around Daisuke and tying his wings close to his body. He had one arm free and that one flailed around angrily, wishing more than ever that he had his D-Terminal and D-3 with him. That, and V-mon, too. If he had those, he could _do something_

"Let me go!" He managed to snarl, yanking at the sticky web with his free hand, and struggling harder when that just ended up sticking to him even more.

"Oh, no, I'm not going to do that. You look far too tasty to give up." Dokugumon moved closer, fastening a thread to Daisuke's bonds. "Time to go!"

Daisuke kept on struggling; he hadn't given up when Kaiser captured him and he wasn't going to give up _now_.

"I quite agree on the part about it being time to go."

Daisuke froze in place. He thought his heart kept beating but only out of habit, because nothing else wanted to work at all. He could tilt his head and he did, just the tiniest bit. Just enough so that he could see.

Slowly, elegantly, as if he strode on a red carpet strewn with flowers in front of an adoring crowd, the Digimon Kaiser arrived. He spun an Evil Spiral between his fingers.

"But I think I have a change of destination in mind."

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	8. Chapter 8

**Characters:** Daisuke, Ken|| **Pairing:** Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken  
 **Chapter Word Count:** 1,585|| **Story Word Count:** 12,574| **Chapter Count:** 8/8

* * *

Daisuke's wings beat faster and faster, trying to get out of the tangled loop of sticky web that Dokugumon had him wrapped up in. When it came to being eaten by a spider Digimon or going back into the Kaiser's grip...well, at least the spider was honest about what he wanted Daisuke for: lunch.

Slowly Kaiser moved forward, clearly enjoying every terrified twitch Daisuke made.

Dokugumon whirled around, raising up, probably planning to attack the Kaiser, when Daisuke's nemesis tossed the Evil Spiral he held, having it wrap around one wing. Dokugumon flailed for a few moments before subsiding, bowing down, eyes now scarlet.

"Go over that way," Kaiser ordered his new slave. "Don't let anyone come here until I tell otherwise."

The only answer Dokugumon gave was to hurriedly obey. The only thing that made it mildly better was that they weren't headed for the restaurant.

Until it clicked with Daisuke there was probably a reason for that. He jerked around more, trying to get to his feet.

"Guys! Hikari-chan! Takeru! Miyako!" He flailed even more, despite nothing working and Kaiser striding closer with every moment. "Iori! Hurry up! Kaiser's right –"

Kaiser's hand struck hard across Daisuke's mouth. "Keep quiet." He stared down at Daisuke with the sort of expression that the Flier recognized as _absolutely furious_.

Before he could say another word, the three Gotsumon raced up, babbling Daisuke's name. He shook his head, wanting them out of there. If he couldn't save himself, he could at least save them.

But Kaiser turned toward them and where did he get all of those Evil Rings?

In moments, all three knelt before Kaiser. His orders were as quick and to the point as the ones to Dokugumon: go the way he'd indicated and let no one pass.

If anyone else wanted to come, they were smart enough to back off before Kaiser saw them. He locked eyes once again with Daisuke.

"I don't think I'll untie you until we're back home," he said at last. He didn't sound very angry, but after the last three months, Daisuke knew Kaiser lived in a constant state of rage. "And then you will have to persuade me on why I shouldn't have your wings clipped."

Daisuke found it hard to so much as move after those words. He shook his head.

"You can't..."

That earned him another hard backhand. He'd bruise from these, he knew it. But Kaiser didn't care. He just stared balefully at his prisoner.

"I can do whatever I want to you, Daisuke. If you're not very, very persuasive, I'll see to it that you're grounded until I choose otherwise."

Clipped flight feathers could grow back in. Kaiser wouldn't take his wings away entirely; that could kill a Flier, and Kaiser wanted to keep him. But to never again touch the sky…

Daisuke knew that he had some very serious humiliation ahead of him.

Kaiser's familiar AirDramon hovered there now, and Kaiser brought out the leash, attaching it to Daisuke's collar. He wanted no explanations, tugging Daisuke along, despite the fact Dokugumon's webbing kept him from doing much proper walking. He had to hop instead.

Part of him kind of hoped the hopping would keep them there just long enough so the Chosen would turn up.

Hoping wasn't his specialty but he tried anyway. But he still made it to the AirDramon, hauled up there by the Kaiser, before there was any sign of the others at all.

 _I'll see you again, guys. I promise._ He didn't know when or how. But it would happen. He wouldn't give up until it did.

The same lethargy that had overwhelmed him months before crept back around him as AirDramon turned and made away from the restaurant area. His head drooped, staring at nothing in particular, until Kaiser seized him by the back of his hair and twisted him around so their eyes met again.

"Say it, Daisuke. Say it and mean It and know that this is just the beginning."

Daisuke swallowed, every bit of attention focused on this horrible, evil person.

"I'm sorry, master." He didn't mean it. What he was sorry about was being caught again, not being able to find the others fast enough, not being _good enough_.

That got another hit. "I said to mean it. Keep on saying it until I tell you to stop. And look at me the whole time. I'm your world, Daisuke: the only one you'll ever have."

Over and over the words spilled out and Daisuke could not take his eyes off the Kaiser. Any time he tried, that got another hit, harder than the ones before. He had no idea of how bruised and battered he was by the time they landed at the fortress, only that it hurt to talk and he wanted to rest so very much.

He didn't think he'd be catching a nap any time soon.

* * *

Takeru stumbled into the clearing near the restaurant, breathing hard, his heart pounding. He'd heard shouting that sounded too much like Daisuke for his personal comfort, and seeing the Gotsumon and a Dokugumon coming to attack them hadn't made him drag his feet.

With Hanumon and Pegasumon to back him up, and the rest of the team coming as fast as they could, he'd broken through, hoping against hope to find Daisuke still there.

What he saw was AirDramon sailing away and a glimpse of a familiar caped figure. It took him a moment to realize the slumped form at Kaiser's feet was Daisuke. It had been so long…

He shouted after them, but the wind caught the words and pulled them away: or so he told himself. There was a wind. But neither Kaiser nor Daisuke turned as if they'd heard him.

He wanted now to think they hadn't. That Kaiser wasn't so angry at Daisuke that he ignored him or that Daisuke – who'd clearly just tried to escape, why else would Kaiser be so vividly angry? - would ignore him for any reason at all.

An unexpected hand rested on his shoulder. He looked to see Hikari there, a worried look in her eyes, with Miyako and Iori, and their partners, not far behind.

"They got away," he reported, hating the taste of the words on his tongue. "I didn't get here fast enough."

A thousand regrets flourished. If he'd come sooner. If he'd moved faster. If he'd taken a different route and hadn't met Hanumon. He didn't regret freeing any of the Kaiser's slaves, but in this case…

Hikari squeezed his shoulder. "We'll find him." It was the same mantra they'd used since learning Daisuke had been taken in the first place. Then she frowned. "Do you want to tell V-mon about this?"

Takeru winced at the question, but he thought he knew the answer. "I want to. But I don't think we should. I barely saw him. It would… it would hurt him too much." He hated to think of keeping a secret like this, but telling would be even worse.

"Are you sure?" Iori didn't look as if he agreed and Takeru suspected that he didn't agree with himself either.

"As sure as I can be right now," he said, shoulders sliding downward. "Come on, guys. Let's see what we can do around here first."

It wasn't the best of endings. But at least they knew that Daisuke was still alive. Still fighting in some way.

It was what they had, for now.

* * *

Kaiser clipped a strong chain to Daisuke's collar and fastened it against the wall. "You'll only get off this if I take you off," he said, staring down at Daisuke. His pet looked up at him, eyes half-glazed, weariness all over him.

He'd had to work at that restaurant. Daisuke shouldn't work unless Kaiser commanded him to.

"When they come to clean up, even if I take you off of this, if you step out of this room without my permission, I will clip your wings and _keep_ them clipped. Do you understand me?"

Daisuke dipped his head. Then before Kaiser could correct him, he spoke, his voice still weary.

"Yes, master."

Kaiser rewarded him with a stroke of one hand through his hair. "Good boy. Perhaps you don't need to learn as much as I thought."

His hand tightened in Daisuke's hair before his pet could get any ideas. "But I will make certain you've learned your lessons very thoroughly regardless." He never, ever made the same mistake twice. Even now, he'd underestimated Daisuke's desire for freedom.

But he could use that now to his advantage. Everything Daisuke did just showed his master where his weaknesses were.

"My pretty pet," he murmured, staring down into Daisuke's eyes. Defiance faded and flickered in their depths. He leaned forward to rest his lips upon Daisuke's, taking the kiss he so wanted and had held off on for so long.

Shock replaced Daisuke's defiance and trembles ran all through his back and wings. Kaiser moved closer, lips not moving, caressing those wings that he loved so much.

"I keep what's mine, Daisuke," he murmured. "Are you mine?" He knew what the answer would be. He'd made it plain to Daisuke what his position was. This changed nothing.

Daisuke's eyes dropped, but only for a second. Kaiser insisted on meeting his gaze, to establish the proper relationship.

"Yes, master."

Oh, he could tell how much Daisuke hated it. But he didn't care. He kissed him again.

"You're mine, forever."

 **The End**

Notes: Well, that's that, for this one, anyway. Daisuke back in the Kaiser's fortress, and only a slim beam of hope for the Chosen, one they can't even truly count on. They might have to try to move on without Daisuke...but if they do, can they beat Ken?

I'm not telling.

Next week a new story begins, but not in this universe. I don't know which one yet. Something to do with Digimon, but other than that? You got me. But I hope to see you there!


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